​Remember Len Brown’s infamous tax, the ‘Transport Levy’ that added 3% extra to rates bills for three years, which was supposed to boost spending on transport? Well, it turns out we were all deceived.

The Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance (ARA) has been suspicious for some time that the Auckland public was being kept in the dark about actual spending on transport. In reality spending on public transport has been stagnant since 2008. Present and future spending is declining. This was confirmed when the Alliance obtained a Ministry of Transport financial analysis of Auckland Council’s transport spending. This was reported on in the Herald yesterday.​Meanwhile the ARA has out the following information to its members.

Government documents show that Aucklanders were lied to

Dear Supporter,

Back in 2015 when rates were put up by 9.9% and the interim 'transport levy' was introduced, we were told that the pain was necessary because Auckland Council needed the money to boost transport spending.

Earlier today we went public with analysis, prepared by Ministry of Transport officials in Wellington, which show that Auckland Council has been lying ratepayers.

The documents prove what many of us suspected: Council funding of Auckland’s transportation has remained stagnant since 2008 – even with higher rates and new levies.

Even worse, it turns out that the Council is reducing transport spending by 46% in 2018. despite the growing rating base, transport spending by the Council is to be cut by an average of 13% over the next decade

Looking ahead, the Government's modeling suggests that despite Auckland's growing rating base, transport spending by the Council is to be cut by an average of 13% over the next decade

Until today, the analysis was secret. We gave the material to the New Zealand Herald - you can read its coverage here.

Last year we voted for a new Mayor and Council to get busy and fix Auckland’s transport infrastructure. These documents show that the Council’s spin that it is focused on transport infrastructure is a nonsense.

Not only was Len Brown’s transport levy not even used to fund transport infrastructure, now Phil Goff’s Council claims its removal is the reason for reducing transport spending.

The Mayor and the Council have been very vocal about the $4 to $7 billion transport funding shortfall over the next decade. They have been in the media in recent months blaming the Government. But what the Council didn't want you to know is that it is the Council, not the Government, which has planned to reduce transport spending over the next ten years.

Who do you believe, Auckland Council’s 150 spin-doctors, or the boffins at the Ministry of Transport?

Chip-in so we can keep digging and shining light on the Council's spending​If it wasn’t for your support of the Ratepayers Alliance, these documents would have remained buried. To enable us to keep shining the light on the Council and put the pressure on the Mayor to actually deliver on his campaign promises, chip-in to the cause here.

Your support will force the Council to listen to ratepayers who want spending focused on core services. We rely 100% on the support of you, and other supporters who agree with our mission of reasonable rates, and sensible spending in the Super City.

It has been obvious to the man in the street that Auckland Council is not keeping up road maintenance, building roads or car parks to cope with present, let alone future, demand. All Goff can think of doing is demand more car taxes, but now we know we’ve been lied to over one tax we can be certain another will do nothing but raise revenue for all the wasteful projects being undertaken by Council.

As I predicted Goff is nothing but another useless politician who has live so long in his privileged, taxpayer funded, bubble that all he can think of to ‘solve’ any problem is to increase the tax burden of all those who actually work for a living.​